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Briton's throat slit in Italy
03/11/2007 14:04 - (SA)
London - A British woman who was found dead with her throat cut in Italy was a student on the third year of a European studies degree, her university said on Saturday.
A spokesperson for Leeds University in northern England said Meredith Kercher, 21, had been in Perugia, northern Italy, as part of the pan-European Erasmus exchange programme.
"We are deeply shocked at this terrible news and our thoughts are with Meredith's family and friends," she said.
Kercher, from Croydon, south London, was found with her throat slit in the bedroom of her apartment on Friday. She had earlier been to see a film at a friend's house before returning alone.
The Foreign Office in London confirmed that a Briton had been found dead, but did not give further details.
"Our consular staff are in Perugia to liaise with the Italian authorities and to provide the necessary consular assistance," a spokesman said.
Media reports said police went to Kercher's apartment after finding a mobile phone which is thought to belong to the victim in a nearby garden. A woman is said to have received a threatening call from the phone Thursday night.
Police forced open her locked door and found her body under a mattress. Blood was also detected on a broken window through which her attacker is thought to have escaped.
- AFP
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